A set of plastic domes large enough to each seat a dozen people sprang up on a Rochester restaurant's rooftop patio this winter, and for a few weeks, diners delighted in eating outside while posting all-but-made-for-social-media pictures of the domes lit from within and dusted with snow, the city's skyline twinkling in the background.
It all seemed like so much fun. And then someone alerted authorities.
Unbeknownst to customers, local safety officials were not consulted before the restaurant's manager, Bruce Paine, erected the "igloos," which are sold on gardening websites as greenhouses or garden retreats.
It turns out that both the Rochester Fire Department and the city's building safety official had some questions — there's a possible code violation — but Paine had customers to feed at the restaurant, La Vetta.
The "igloos" have been a runaway hit, with scores of reservations made for seatings that last two hours and require $150 in food and drink orders. The local social media buzz has diners boasting of the views and the novelty. It seems like only a handful of places have done something similar, including the rooftop bar at 230 Fifth in New York City and the Godfrey Hotel in Chicago.
When word got out that the rules might dictate an early end to the rooftop eatery, hundreds of Paine's supporters turned up on Facebook and elsewhere to ask: Can't Rochester just have some fun once in a while?
"Rochester 'fun police' are at it again," jeered a Facebook poster by the name of Richard Westlund. His comment was one of dozens taunting the city killjoys.
Another person even invoked the city's hallowed Mayo Clinic and the $5.6 billion "Destination Medical Center" expansion that's underway: "If Rochester is to truly become a destination center, it must have unique attractions beyond its medical focus," wrote Michelle on La Vetta's Facebook page. "Please find a way to make La Vetta's igloos remain. They are stunning!"
An online petition to "Save the rooftop bubbles!!!" drew 3,200 signatures.
For now, Paine and city officials have settled into an icy standoff with plans to discuss the issue Tuesday. Paine says he'll do what he can to address city codes.
Paine, who said he employs about a dozen servers and bartenders to keep the rooftop patio going in the winter, said he wants to keep those people employed.
"As we work very swiftly on accommodating everything that needs to be accommodated, we're open," he said.
Propane tanks, open flames
Paine said he was surprised to learn of possible code violations after seeing similar rooftop structures in another city, but an anonymous tip to the Fire Department resulted in an investigator's visit on Dec. 29. The investigator found 20-lb. liquid propane tanks and open-flame heaters inside the igloos, both of which violate the city's fire code.
The tanks were removed and the restaurant was told to not use open flames. Paine closed the rooftop patio that night but reopened the next day.
Randy Johnson, the city's building safety official, then told La Vetta about a possible height restriction. There's a chance that the rooftop structures cannot be installed on a roof that's higher than 55 feet, Johnson said, but he's consulting with the International Code Council to get an accurate reading of the standardized building codes that Rochester follows.
Johnson also wants to see the results of a fire test on the structures.
'No turning back this time'
After learning of the height restriction, Paine wrote a note Jan. 3 to the restaurant's fans on Facebook, saying the code was impossible to meet.
"Unfortunately there is no turning back this time," Paine wrote. "We did everything we could."
He now hopes to find a solution at Tuesday's meeting with the city.
Meanwhile, the social media debate has raged on.
A recent Facebook post from the restaurant topped with a beautiful photo of the domes lit up at night drew hundreds of comments, most of them supportive.
Commenter Andrei Rublev considered the possibility that the domes would be shut down, and how that would leave the city with one less enjoyable thing to do on a night out. Rublev then pointed to the elephant in the igloo: "Entertainment-wise, Rochester is not cutting-edge."
Matt McKinney • 612-673-7329
